


We're Not Friends

by giantpanda



Category: The Good Doctor (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:02:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24422452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/giantpanda/pseuds/giantpanda
Summary: Dinner at his place, leads to a conversation about their future.
Relationships: Claire Browne/Neil Melendez
Comments: 16
Kudos: 60





	We're Not Friends

_We've been lying to ourselves  
Acting like we're something else  
How'd we get in this masquerade?  
There's a secret in your eyes  
It's the same one that's in mine  
Aren't you tired of being this way?  
~We’re Not Friends by Ingrid Andress~_

Neil always prided himself on his professionalism. He felt that he was a good mentor to the residents and provided them with the support they needed to help them grow and learn. He was an excellent surgeon and compassionate when dealing with his patients. He knew some called him arrogant, but he knew he had earned the right to be. Claire was the first person to ever make him doubt himself.

After the favoritism complaint, he began to question his actions with her. While he thought he was simply being a good mentor and friend, he soon realized that was not all he was doing. He tried to end their friendship and return it to simply working together. The emptiness he felt when he didn’t get to spend time with her made him realize that despite what they had repeatedly said, his feelings were not platonic. 

He missed her and the relationship that they had. He listened to her as she said they could still be friends outside of work. It hadn’t taken much convincing. The hardest part was making sure that he kept his growing feelings for her hidden. He didn’t want to make her uncomfortable or lose her friendship. While he knew the two of them could be something special, he also knew the risks to their careers were immense. There were times when he felt like he could see the same feelings he had reflected in her eyes.

Luckily, things at work with the complaint blew over. They both realized that if they disagreed and fought occasionally, the other residents didn’t pay them any attention. It frustrated him because her ideas were usually the best and she used facts to back up her arguments. As they did with Morgan, they staged their fights by discussing patients behind the other residents’ backs. It seemed a small price to pay to keep their relationship intact.

The day before had been a challenging day for them all. They had a rough surgery that had taken longer than expected. When he had found Claire out on the balcony, they were both exhausted and relieved to have the next day off. He ended up inviting her over for dinner on their day off. He blamed his exhaustion for not thinking it through properly. Having her at his house for a home cooked meal felt more like a date then their previous times together. Although, if he allowed himself to be honest, they all felt like they had been leading up to something more.

Now he found himself waiting on her to arrive. He had felt a nervous buzz of energy all day. Anticipation for her coming over. Spending time with her was quickly becoming his favorite thing to do. He knew it was dangerous and he needed to continuously remind himself that she was just his friend. Even though he wanted her to be so much more.

He heard a knock at the door, pulling him from his thoughts. He took a deep breath to settle his nerves. He went to let her in and couldn’t stop himself from smiling when he opened the door. 

“Hi,” she said, smiling back at him. She stepped inside and slipped of her shoes, leaving them beside his.

“Hey,” he reached out and took the bag from her hands. He glanced inside and saw brownies, ice cream and chocolate sauce for dessert. “I thought when you said you were bringing dessert, you were going to bake something. Not buy it.”

“I value our friendship too much to poison you,” she said laughing. “I can’t cook.”

He ignored the pang he felt in his chest at the word friendship. He reminded himself again that was all they could have.

“What do you mean you can’t cook?” he asked as they walked to the kitchen. He placed the ice cream in the freezer and left the bag on the counter. “I’ve seen you in surgery, I think you can handle making brownies.”

She leaned against the counter as he poured them both a glass of wine.

“I guess I could try if I wanted to, but the few times I attempted have been a disaster.” She sighed. “I either burn it or undercook it.” She took a sip of wine. “Once I did both.”

“How is that even possible?” he asked in disbelief.

“I wish I knew.”

“I could teach you,” he said as the timer when off. He moved to take the lasagna out of the oven.

“I may take you up on that,” she said taking a deep breath. “That smells delicious.”

“Thanks,” he said. 

“I just hope it tastes as good as it smells,” she teased. 

He glared at her as they took everything to the table. “Of course, it does.”

They settled down at the table and he dished out some lasagna. As they ate, they discussed some of their patients. It always amazed him how easy it was to simply be with her. They were able to keep the conversation flowing, and when there was silence it was never uncomfortable. Watching her sit at his table, made him picture how amazing it would be to have her there every night. Sometimes he felt like he saw something in her eyes that made him wish they could discuss what they really wanted.

“This is really good,” she said, taking another bite.

“Don’t sound so surprised,” he laughed.

“You know it’s really not fair,” she reached for her wine.

“What?”

“You’re an incredible surgeon, good looking, and an amazing chief,” she shook her head. “You’re too perfect.”

He didn’t answer right away, his heart skipping, wondering if maybe his feelings weren’t so one sided. Then he smirked, “Feel free to keep going.”

She laughed. “I don’t think your ego needs anymore.”

He laughed with her as they settled back into eating dinner. They continued talking about various things and planned the next time they would go running. Claire reached for her wine glass again, but he noticed that she didn’t take a drink. Instead, she gently swirled the wine in her glass.

“What’s wrong?”

A feeling of dread settled in his stomach. The evening had been going so well. He wasn’t used to seeing such uncertainty in her eyes.

“Are we friends?” she asked softly.

“Absolutely,” he answered without hesitation.

“Is that all we are?” she asked, taking a deep breath. “Neil, is that all you want us to be?”

He reached out for his wine and took a slow sip to stall. He would love for them to be more, but their positions as the hospital prevented it. Although a part of him wondered if he was using that as an excuse. His last two relationships had ended in heartbreak, and he knew if he lost Claire it would be devastating. 

“It’s all we can be,” he finally answered.

She shook her head, “That wasn’t the question.”

“Claire,” he said softly. “I won’t jeopardize your career.”

“It’s my career, my choice,” she said.

He looked at the determination in her face and realized that she had been struggling with this as he had. He had a feeling that everything was going to change with this conversation, and he felt a glimmer of hope that he might finally get what he wanted.

“There was already the favoritism complaint. I don’t want anyone to ever question that you earned your position at the hospital.”

She sighed as she reached for her glass. She took a large sip. “I’ve been thinking about that.”

“You have?”

“I even talked to my therapist about it.”

He couldn’t help but smile at her as a sense of relief flowed through him. They were both on the same page. A future he had only allowed himself to dream about felt like it was just within his grasp.

“What did she say?” he asked softly.

“That it wouldn’t be easy,” she answered. “She told me to picture the future and think about what I saw and what I wanted. Then that I needed to be sure about what I wanted before talking to you.”

“Are you sure?”

“I love working with you. I have learned so much and have become a better surgeon because of you. You have pushed me and believed in me.” She took a shaky breath. “And I would miss working beside you, but I would miss this more. I can imagine a future without you as my boss, I can’t imagine one without this.”

He was speechless. She was so much braver than he was. He had convinced himself that this would never work because of their positions at the hospital, but she was willing to stop working with him to make this happen. He gave himself a moment to think about what the future would like. 

“Do you want us to just to be friends?” she asked quietly.

He reached out and grasped her hand. “This hasn’t been platonic for me for a long time.”

Her shoulders sagged in relief. “I was so afraid I was going to ruin everything.”

“I’m glad you said something,” he ran his thumb against the back of her hand. “I don’t want us to just to friends.”

She smiled at him. “So what happens next.”

“We fight for this.”

He knew that they would be up against challenges at work, but they would find a way. As much as he would like to keep this between them, he knew that they would have to talk to Glassman and Lim. He wouldn’t risk her reputation. She had so much more to lose than he did.

He let go of her hand and stood to begin cleaning up the dishes from dinner. She followed him into the kitchen and stood next to him as they cleaned up. He felt as if the boundaries they had placed around keeping their relationship strictly as friends had been removed. He laughed as she bumped up against him to place the dishes in the sink. He placed his hand on her waist turning her towards him. She looked up at him. He finally was able to do what he had been dreaming about for weeks. He leaned forward and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him closer.

He knew it wouldn’t be easy, but it would be worth it. As long as they were together, they would be able to handle anything. He looked forward to seeing what the future held for them.

The End


End file.
